- The UAW has reached a tentative agreement with the Dauch Corporation.
- Local 2093 went on strike at the beginning of the month over wages.
- If approved, the deal will see top employees make up to $30 per hour.
UAW Local 2093 has reached a tentative agreement with the Dauch Corporation, which was previously known as American Axle. This came approximately ten days after nearly 1,000 union members went on strike at the Three Rivers plant in rural Michigan.
This threatened automotive production and the union was upset about wages, which were slashed during the Great Recession. In a bid to keep the facility from closing, many workers saw their pay cut from as much as $29 an hour to just $14.50 in 2008. The union added that nearly two decades later, wages are “currently topping out at $22 an hour after a five-year progression.”
More: They Halved Their Pay 18 Years Ago To Save The Plant, Now A Strike Threatens GM’s Pickups
That’s a pretty steep cut, but help is on the way as the tentative agreement will see employees earning up to $30 per hour by 2030. That’s a 36% increase over the course of four years and the union noted legacy members – who were hired before May 31, 2012 – will see an immediate $8 per hour increase upon the agreement’s ratification.
Besides sizable pay increases, the UAW said the agreement includes more paid days off. They added this was done without any concessions on health care costs.
Manufacturing Dive reports employees will get Veterans Day and Martin Luther King Jr. Day off, while workers with at least one year of seniority will gain an additional nine vacation days per year. The publication also mentioned a $2,000 ratification bonus and another $1,000 bonus that will be paid out one year later.
Workers still have to vote on the agreement, but union leadership seems pleased with the deal as Local 2093 Bargaining Chair Josh Jager said, “This contract will change lives in Three Rivers and across southwest Michigan.” He added, “I am damn proud of this agreement and I am damn proud to be a member of UAW Local 2093.”
Those sentiments were echoed by UAW Region 1D Director Steve Dawes, who said the agreement takes care of current and legacy members as well as future employees.
